


Not enemies

by filhadoboto



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Arranged Marriage, Clandestine Encounters, Complete, Daenerys and Drogo are engaged, F/M, Falling In Love, First Love, Fluff and Angst, Forbidden Love, Free Choice, Gen, Ghost is a dog, HEA, Jonerys, Jonerys AU, Jonerys Valentine's Week, Jonerys Week, Lace, Minor Violence, Murder, Secret Relationship, Valentine’s Day, dragon tattoo, enemy peoples, inspired by valentine’s day, jonerysvalentines2020, magic tattoos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-20
Updated: 2020-02-20
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:53:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22812643
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/filhadoboto/pseuds/filhadoboto
Summary: Daenerys and Jon belong to enemy peoples, but that doesn't stop them from falling in love.
Relationships: Daenerys Targaryen & Rhaella Targaryen, Ghost & Jon Snow, Jon Snow & Daenerys Targaryen, Jon Snow/Daenerys Targaryen, Rhaegal & Daenerys Targaryen
Comments: 12
Kudos: 49





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was written for iceandfiresource's Jonerys Valentine Week 2020 Lace and Leather edition on Tumblr. 
> 
> Day 7 (Lace): Prompts: Free Choice + Forbidden Love + Secret Relationship
> 
> English is not my native language, sorry for grammar errors. In google translate I trust!

Jon Snow knew he shouldn't be _there_.

He knew that crossing that river was expressly prohibited and venturing into the forest could mean or be severely _punished_ by his people if he was caught or _killed_ by their enemies for invading their territory.

His people called their enemies the _phantom people_. The first villagers who lived there believed that the skin of the phantom people possessed magical powers that could be used from curing diseases to increasing longevity and, some said, they could even fulfill wishes if you were strong and brave enough to hunt, capture and kill one of them. And those beliefs had led his people to hunt the phantom people, with villagers invading their village in the forest and kidnapping people to take off their magical skins. The war was not long in coming, since in retaliation the phantom people attacked with their magical beasts and it was only after much blood spilled on both sides that the leaders agreed to a truce. Each people would stay on their side of the river, the phantom people would remain in the forest and the villagers would not disturb them. Or at least that was the story that his mother told him when he was a child and she took him to see the ruins of the old village that was closer to the river than the current one and that was destroyed during the war.

Centuries have passed, the war has become legend, phantom people were feared and remembered as enemies, murderous and bloodthirsty creatures that killed anyone who dared to set foot in their territory and the villagers learned to fear the forest and stay away. He had grown up hearing horrifying stories about foolish villagers who wanted to prove themselves brave and whose mutilated bodies were seen days later hanging from the branches of trees at the edge of the forest.

He remembered the nights around the campfire where he and all the other children listened while the elders in the village told stories about the mysterious people of the forest, how impressed and curious he was every time he heard about how pale their skin was, and tattooed with drawings of the horrible magical beasts, such as dragons, snakes and harpies, that followed and protected them in battle, malicious eyes that could lead you to complete madness and melodious voices that could bewitch you and compel you to do what they wanted.

These stories were meant to scare children and fill their hearts with fear and keep them safe and out of trouble, but he had long since ceased to be a child and his curiosity about the phantom people led him to consider the idea of crossing the river and trying to see one of them with his own eyes. He had grown up knowing that the forest was forbidden territory, but that didn’t diminish the fascination he felt when he watched the forest from afar and heard the faint sound of leaves rustling in the wind during his walks through the ruins of the old village.

It was on a full moon night that he first saw someone from the ghost people. After months and months pondering whether it was worth it or not to risk his life to kill his curiosity, Jon had finally decided to cross the river and take a look at the forest. Accompanied by Ghost, his faithful dog, Jon had explored a few meters, fascinated by the trees and the aromas and colors of the forest. Ghost had looked at everything, initially suspicious of everything, as if he was waiting for something to attack them, but after a while, he had started chasing small animals that hid among the tree roots and seemed as excited to be there as Jon. When the sunset made the forest darken, Jon decided it was time to go home. But when he came out of the forest, the full moon had turned the scene into something that seemed out of a dream and that made him hesitate to go home, so the two of them had sat on the rocks by the river bank and watched as the moon made its way across the night sky.

It was well past the middle of the night and he was preparing to cross the river and return home when he heard Ghost's slight growl and he looked at the forest in alarm. Jon's heart sped up, fear and anticipation invading his body when he scanned the forest line and saw _her_. She was standing at the edge of the forest, her arms spread and her face turned to the sky, seeming to be watching the full moon above them. The wind stirred her long silver hair, her clothes danced around her and she looked like the moon made flesh.

Delighted by the sight and without thinking about what could happen to him, Jon started walking slowly towards the girl and he was about ten steps away from her when she heard him. She turned towards him and he stopped. For a few seconds their eyes met and he felt his heart beat faster and he held his breath, as if he feared that any movement of his would frighten her and she would disappear in midair. Ghost snarled when the sound of great wings flapping filled the air and their eyes parted, but before he could identify the source of the sound, he felt something hit him violently and his body flew in the air and hit the ground and then he lost the senses.

The sun was hitting his face when Jon woke up in his bed. He blinked a few times, confused by the dream he had last night. He had dreamed of a silver-haired girl bathed in moonlight and then... then he realized that he _was not_ in his bed, much less at home. He was lying on the edge of the forest and the sun hitting his face was seeping through the canopy.

Why was he still in the forest? He remembered admiring the moon until late at night and thinking about returning home... but what was he still doing there?

Jon looked around, startled. In front of him were the remains of a fire that he _didn’t_ remember lighting, he also didn’t remember how he got there and his whole body ached and his head was the worst part. He relaxed when he saw Ghost's huge body asleep next to him, raised his hand to his forehead and felt a soft piece of fabric wrap around his head. With both hands he untied it and saw that it was stained with a mixture of macerated herbs and blood. He stared at the piece of fabric for a few seconds and then the memory of that fabric dancing in the wind around the girl's body hit him.

**\------------------------------------------**

Daenerys Targaryen was an inconsequential fool!

She knew it was dangerous to wander the forest boundaries. She knew that she could be captured by one of the barbaric villagers who lived on the other side of the river and that they wouldn’t hesitate to kidnap, torture and rape her before taking off her skin to use as a bizarre lucky charm. And if it weren't for her faithful guardian, if it weren't for her dragon Rhaegal, this could have been her fate last night.

According to ancient stories told by her people, the barbaric villagers of the plain believed that the skin of her people had magical powers and had hunted and captured them for many years until her hitherto peaceful people resolved to fight back and the great war began. Both sides lost many people until the leaders agreed to a truce and to make a peace agreement that established that the two peoples committed themselves not to cross the river that separated their territories. But she had already heard several stories about some foolish barbarians who had found death while roaming the forest trying to find the place where her people lived and their bodies had been left at the edge of the forest as a reminder of the terms of the old agreement.

What the barbarians never discovered was that it _wasn’t_ their skin that was magical, but the ink that they used to get their tattoos. As soon as a woman discovered she was pregnant, the fruit of the sacred tree was incorporated into her diet and when the baby was born, the midwife performed a ritual that consisted of mixing the umbilical cord blood with the sap of the sacred tree and, with this mixture, the baby's skin was tattooed with the protective animal of each clan. An unbreakable bond was then created between the baby and the tattoo, which developed as the child grew.

It was thanks to that bond that Rhaegal had protected her.

That day had been one of the worst in her life. Early in the morning, she had had to pretend she was the happiest girl in the world while her engagement to Drogo from the Dothraki clan was made official and the wedding date was announced. In the society in which she lived, it was customary for families to make matrimonial arrangements when their children were born, whether with families of the same clan or other clans, and everyone grew up already knowing who they would spend the rest of their lives with.

Her older brother Viserys had married Doreah from the Lys clan a few months ago, and Daenerys was the first in the Targaryen clan to be promised to someone from the Dothraki clan and many of the girls around her thought she was lucky to be promised to someone like Drogo, who was one of the strongest warriors in his clan. But _luck_ wasn’t the word she used to describe her commitment or the way her destiny had been decided at the time she was born and left her with only two options: build a relationship with the man she was promised and learn to love him _or_ , if she was unable to love him, learn to respect him and honor the commitment made by her family, even if it meant resigning herself to spending the rest of her life with someone she didn't love and couldn't connect with.

It wasn’t for lack of attempts that she had failed to create a connection with Drogo and the fact that there was a ten-year difference between them and he had already been promised to two other girls from the Dothraki clan (who had died years before she was born) it didn't make it any easier for her to find something that would help her create the kind of bond they were expected to create. So, unable to have another feeling besides fear for her betrothed, she had been left with the second option and she had resigned herself to honoring their commitment and building a family with someone she couldn't even have a conversation with.

When their families made the announcement that their wedding would be the day after her eighteenth birthday, that is, in less than eight months, Drogo had held her hand and deposited the tenderest of kisses, but when no one else was paying attention to both, he had taken her aside, pulled her against him and whispered in her ear about how he would look forward to the day when he could finally get his hands on her and doing everything he had been fantasizing about since she stopped being a child. His hungry gaze had sent shivers of fear through her and she had turned away from him and, as soon as she could, asked her mother for permission to leave, and instead of going to her room, she had fled as far as her legs could get her.

She had walked aimlessly for hours in the forest and when her legs got tired, she had sat against a tree and cried herself to sleep. When she woke up, the forest was dark and the moonlight filtered through the canopy of the trees. It was because of the moon that she had dared to walk to the edge of the forest and it was her heart filled with sadness and hopelessness that had distracted her from the world around her. When she felt Rhaegal slide over her skin to materialize beside her, Daenerys knew there was some danger close by, a danger she hadn't seen, but her dragon did. Then she looked around and saw _him_ , their eyes met for a few seconds and fear invaded her when she realized who he was and the danger that the presence of that boy meant for her. The sound of Rhaegal's wings reached her ears and seconds later the dragon attacked the boy and he was thrown to the ground and a white dog stood protectively between the boy and the dragon.

Without even thinking, she had walked over to where the white dog snarled at Rhaegal in an attacking position and touched the dragon's warm flank to calm him down and the dragon closed its wings and lay down, watching her and the other animal's every movement. The dog had stopped snarling and stared at her as she carefully approached him and knelt beside the unconscious boy. Carefully, she had turned him over so she could see his face and was surprised at how handsome and young he was, maybe he was the same age as her. Under the watchful eye of the dog, she had carefully examined his wounds and was relieved to see that although his black curls were soaked with blood, there was only a small cut on his forehead.

With Rhaegal's help, she had taken his unconscious body into the forest and placed him against a tree. Both animals watched her as she gathered firewood and built a fire with the help of her dragon (one of the advantages of having a dragon as a guardian was that you always had fire at your disposal) and then used pieces of her dress and river water to clean and bandage the wound with some herbs she had collected in the forest. While she was bandaging the wound, the boy groaned in pain and opened his eyes, staring at her with gray eyes for a few seconds before he lost consciousness again.

She had been surprised when the dog, before lying down beside his companion, had approached her and licked her hand, as if to thank her for helping its friend. It was only when it was so close and lit by the fire that she noticed that it was an albino dog with beautiful red eyes, nose and mouth. She then watched the boy and examined his features for some time while his chest rose and fell in a calm breath and it was only when he moved again, as if to find a more comfortable position, that she managed to muster up enough courage to leave him. Daenerys had added a few more firewood to the fire, and after taking one last look at the boy and his dog, she had mounted Rhaegal and the dragon had taken her safely back to the village.

Back in the safety of her village and ignorant of the angry pair of brown eyes that watched her in the darkness, Rhaegal merged with her and reappeared on her forearm in the form of a tattoo. She quietly entered her house and went straight to her rooms. While trying to calm her heartbeat enough to fall asleep, she couldn't help thinking about what had happened. She knew that the barbaric people of the plains were her enemy and that they wouldn’t hesitate to kill her, but that boy whose wounds she had taken care of looked nothing like what she had imagined them to be. When she finally fell asleep, she dreamed of her wedding day. She had smiled when she saw that instead of Drogo's brown eyes, they were gray eyes that looked into hers as she said the marriage vows.

Explaining about her disappearance to her family the next morning was easier than she had imagined it would be and as everyone ate and talked about her wedding, Daenerys realized that the girl who had run away from her engagement party the day before was not the same girl who woke up that morning.

The girl who had run away was resigned to live to honor her family, but the girl who woke up that morning had a heart full of _hope_.

**\------------------------------------------**

Jon couldn't get the girl out of his thoughts and something told him that this wouldn't be the last time he saw her.

He hadn't even told his mother about what had happened last night and had made up some excuse to justify his head injury. Lyanna knew her son very well and knew he would speak when he was ready. Even though it was a forbidden place, he always managed to sneak around his village without calling someone's attention so he could cross the river and stay for hours in the forest waiting for the girl to appear.

What he had no idea was that the girl did the same.

Hidden by the trees, Daenerys watched him from a distance. All the times she had managed to sneak out of her village, she had seen him there at the edge of the forest. She wanted to be able to approach him, talk to him, but she couldn't find enough courage to go to him, so she stayed there watching him until the day the albino dog found her. In an instant she was alone and in the next she felt its icy snout touching her hand and before she could stop herself, she screamed.

The dog sat down, its tail wagging happily, and stared at her and seconds later she heard hurried footsteps coming towards her and then she saw him standing just a few steps away, dark curls, flushed face and marvelous gray eyes.

He raised his hands “Please don't be afraid. Neither he nor I will hurt you.” he said in a calm voice "Ghost, come here boy." he said and the dog went to him.

Daenerys took a deep breath when her eyes met his and the two stared at each other for a few seconds.

"You _are real_." he said, his voice almost a whisper. His eyes wandered over her body and back to her face and she felt her heart racing.

"Aren't you _afraid_ of me?" she asked, unconsciously taking a step towards him.

"I’m not. _And you_?" he said, also taking a step towards her.

"I’m not, too."

"I know I should." he said, his eyes fixed on hers and a little excitement in his voice "But my curiosity was much stronger than my fear."

She nodded "Mine too."

“I'm sorry if I scared you that other night. When I saw you, I was so fascinated. It was as if the moon itself was walking right before my eyes.”

She felt her cheeks heat up and gave him a faint smile. “Sorry about what my dragon did to you. Rhaegal is my guardian and he felt that I was in danger and attacked you to protect me.”

His eyes widened with a mixture of surprise and excitement “A _dragon_? Was it a dragon that attacked me?”

She nodded and lifted her right arm sleeve and showed him a dragon tattoo with green scales and bronze spines on her forearm.

"So the stories are real." he whispered and he took a step closer and the tattoo moved on her forearm and Jon could have sworn the dragon's eyes were fixed on him, watching his every move. "Thank you for taking care of me." he offered.

"It was the least I could do."

The sound of splitting branches echoed in the forest, she looked around in alarm "You _must not_ come back here." she said with a mixture of urgency and fear in her voice.

"What? _Why not_?"

She frowned. Did he not know the story of the great war? “Because of the treaty between our people. Or have you never heard that each people promised _not_ to step on the other's territory again?”

"I know the treaty, but I come here almost every day and you were the only one of your people that I saw."

"You are our enemy and you should stay away from here." _Before someone who's not as curious as I find you and kill you_ , she wanted to add, but she stopped herself.

"I will not hurt you." he said taking another step towards her "My name is Jon Snow."

“It is dangerous here for people like you. Go away and don't come back.” she said and turned to go.

"Please, at least tell me your name!"

She hesitated before looking at him and saying "I am Daenerys, from the Targaryen clan."

He gave her a mischievous smile "Well let me tell you, Daenerys, from the Targaryen clan, that talking to you only increased my curiosity and I will be here tomorrow and the following days too!” he shouted when she was out of sight and disappeared into the trees.


	2. Chapter 2

Daenerys had sworn to herself that she would never see the boy again. She had sworn to herself that she wouldn't think about him anymore. She had sworn that she would concentrate on her wedding (which would be less than six months away) and resign herself to the life her family had chosen for her... but she had failed to keep any of her oaths. She couldn't stop thinking about the boy. No, not the boy anymore. _Jon_. His name was Jon Snow. Her thoughts always wandered to the memory of him and her traitorous feet always tried to take her where she knew she shouldn't go.

Part of her knew how dangerous it was to let him get close to her and that she shouldn’t only stop thinking about him but also stop yearning to see him again. But there was another part that couldn’t stop thinking that having met him was destiny’s work. Her desperation had taken her directly to meet him, as if Jon could save her from the life that inevitably awaited her beside Drogo.

For days she had resisted her desire to go to him and her willpower had lasted for twenty-seven agonizing days. It was early afternoon when she found him sitting with his dog faithfully beside him, sleeping against the same tree she had left him on the night their paths first crossed. She smiled when Ghost's ears stood up and he looked in her direction. The dog stood up, touched Jon's face with his snout and the boy woke up scared and stroked the dog's fur, which then went to her and stared at her with his impressive red eyes. Discovered in her hiding place, she had two options: return home or reveal herself.

And all she least wanted at that moment was to return home.

"You came." he said with a sweet smile and stood when he saw her come out from behind the trees with Ghost by her side.

"I just wanted to make sure you followed my advice and stayed away from here, but it looks like you have no love for your life."

"I told you that my curiosity is greater than my fear."

"And apparently bigger than your common sense too."

"I knew that all this waiting would be worth it."

"Did you know?" she said, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, I had faith that you would be back and you are here."

"If any of my people find you here, they will not hesitate to kill you."

"I have been careful."

"And how do you know that I'm not going to kill you?"

"You don't look like a murderer."

"Just because I'm a girl?"

"Of course not. If you wanted me dead, I would be dead already, wouldn't I? You would have let your dragon kill me that night.” she nodded and he smiled before continuing “I know that our people have considered themselves enemies for centuries and that each one should stay on their side of the river, but I think we are civilized enough to talk without trying to kill each other or cause another war. If you want, we can be something like _not enemies_.”

" _Not enemies_." she repeated, frowning, trying not to smile. "Are you here because you want us to be friends?" he nodded and she looked at him.

"Isn't there anyone in your village who can be your friend?"

"It has, but no one there is as interesting as you are." he replied sincerely.

There were many risks involved in simply being there in the same place. And if someone discovered them, especially if her betrothed discovered them, there could be horrible consequences for both of them, maybe even a second war between their peoples.

Would it be very selfish of her to put her family at risk because of... _what_? _H_ _er curiosity_? _An unknown boy in search of adventure_? _A whim_? _A forbidden wish_? But since they were there, why not accept being friends with him? In six months she would be marrying a man she didn't love, so if it was selfish of her to want to have something good to remember while living a life without love, then she was the most selfish being in the world.

"It's okay if you don't want to talk to me or be my friend." he said when she just stared at him "I can't blame you for not trusting me."

"Is not it. I'm just thinking about the consequences of us being… _not enemies_.”

He nodded “I also think about the consequences every time I am about to cross the river to come here. I think about what can happen to me or my mother or my people. And yet, every day I risk having to suffer the consequences just for the chance to be able to see you again.”

She pondered for a few seconds before nodding and sitting against the nearest tree. She was going to hold on to every bit of happiness she could achieve until her wedding day. She looked at him and smiled before asking, "So, what do you want to talk about, my not enemy?" much to their surprise, the dog lay down beside her and she stroked its fluffy white fur.

"Do you know how I knew you weren't a danger to me?" he asked and she shook her head. He looked at the dog beside her “Because of him. He protects me as your dragon protects you and would never have let you approach me if he considered you a threat. He likes you."

Daenerys smiled and looked at Ghost "I like you too!" she said and the animal seemed to really enjoy the affection and attention she was giving him.

Jon watched them for a few seconds before he started talking about himself.  How old was he , how delighted he had been with Ghost the day his mother had brought him home and the two had become inseparable. He talked about the fascination he had always felt for the forbidden forest, about the legends that villagers told about her people.

She had heard and kept every piece of information about him and found herself laughing when she heard the crazy legends that involved her people. Daenerys said little about herself at first, avoiding talking about her future wedding, but she shared with him the stories that her people told about his. Talking to Jon was easy and pleasant and made her feel relaxed in a way that she had never felt with anyone else, not even her mother.

Dusk came too quickly, marking the end of their time together, and as they said goodbye, they both looked forward to the moment when they could meet again. Their next meeting was followed by another and another until their clandestine meetings at the edge of the forest became almost daily and the two spent the few moments they had talking about their lives  and  dreams .

Jon felt that his life had started the moment he first saw Daenerys. Now he lived to enjoy the brief moments that they could share in the clearing that they had claimed as theirs. He loved the hours they spent either walking among the trees or on the river bank or sitting against the trees, side by side, talking about their childhoods, what life was like in their villages or telling the legends of their people. Ghost enjoyed being with her as much as he did, and Jon loved watching her pet its fur while she talked about her life.

She took him to explore the forest and talked about all the plants she knew, what her people ate or used as medicine and Jon looked at her fascinated by her enthusiasm and the way her lips moved when she smiled, how her eyes sparkled when she talked about Rhaegal and how she walked so smoothly and elegantly, it looked like she was dancing.

He had been fascinated with her tattoo and how the magic worked. Each of her people's clans had an animal as their protector and spiritual guide and the dragon was the animal of her clan. Feeling the warm scales of Rhaegal on his hands had been one of the most wonderful experiences of his life. It had been fascinating to be able to come face to face with an animal that he, until then, had thought existed only in legends. And she had been so interested in the history of the great war that she had managed to convince him to take her to the ancient ruins on the other side of the river. Together, they roamed the ruins while he told each of the stories his mother had told him and how his parents had met there and fallen in love.

Besides his mother, Daenerys was the first person with whom he felt comfortable talking about the father he had never met. His mother didn't say much about him, and when Jon realized that the subject was too painful for her, he had stopped asking. He knew very little about his father and his mother had never said his name and referred to him only as _her_ _singer._ He also talked about his life with his mother, how she had never agreed to marry another man (even though she knew his father was gone, she seemed to keep alive the hope that he would come through the door at any moment), that she was his best friend and how he had always been attracted to the forest and had always wanted to explore it (even after hearing the stories about the war and visiting the ruins of the old village).

Daenerys told about her older brother, Rhaegar, and that she had named her dragon Rhaegal after him. Her brother had been found dead on the river bank, about a year before she was born. At the time, his people had believed that the barbaric villagers on the plain had been responsible for his death, but since his skin was intact, the council of elders didn’t consider that the barbarians had any responsibility for his death. Rhaegar had a habit of exploring the forest boundaries since he was a teenager and, in the end, they had come to the conclusion that on one of his excursions he had slipped, fallen against the rocks, hit his head and died.

In one of their encounters, _the encounter that changed everything between them_ , Jon surprised her with a crown of lavender that he had picked. The flowers were exactly the shade of violet in her eyes and she smiled when he placed the crown gently on her hair. His hands then rested on either side of her face, his touch warm on her skin and she felt her body quiver as his thumb traced the outline of her lower lip delicately. His eyes wandered from her eyes to her lips and she unconsciously moistened her lips. Jon took a step closer to her, leaving almost no space between their bodies and her hands landed on his chest and she could feel his heart pounding. He looked her in the eye as he slowly lowered his head toward hers and Daenerys didn't hesitate to meet him halfway.

Their lips touched softly for a few seconds, but when her hands landed on his neck and pulled him closer, the kiss became more intense and when their tongues touched, Jon felt his body quiver. His hands landed on her waist and pressed her body against his.  When their lips parted and they looked at each other, Jon felt he could drown in that violet immensity.

"We _shouldn't_ be doing that." she said in a whisper.

"I know." he said and began to place soft kisses on her face.

"We should stay away from each other."

"I know." he kissed her neck and she shivered. He smiled and whispered in her ear "Do you _want_ me to stop, Dany?"

"I Don’t. And _that’s_ the problem, Jon.” she moaned when he nibbled on her earlobe “I don't want you to stop, but we can't be together. We have to stop _before_ we do something that we will regret later.”

Jon took a deep breath and pulled his lips away from her skin. "Are you afraid because our people are enemies?"

"I’m not." she said simply and looked away.

"So, why can't we be together?" he insisted and she looked at her feet “Dany, tell me, please. _Why_ can't we be together?”

The time had come to tell him the truth and she was so afraid to say goodbye, to lose what they had both built in the last few months... but she had to tell the truth.. "I..." she started, then took a deep breath, taking courage, looked him in the eye and destroyed his hopes “I am promised to another, Jon. And we are getting married in a few weeks.”

He looked at her in disbelief. "Did you just tell me you are going _to marry_ someone else?" she nodded slowly, unwanted tears filling her eyes "And when were you going to tell me about it?"

"Jon, I..." she started, but she didn't know what to say.

"Were you just going to stop coming here?"

She hadn't thought about that. She had refused to think that the day of saying goodbye would come "I don't know."

"Or you'd come here to say goodbye?" he pressed her, feeling his heart break into a thousand pieces.

"I don’t know!" she shouted "I just wanted to feel free and happy before..." she took a deep breath "I should have told you before, but I didn't.”

"Why not?"

“I didn't think it was a relevant information when we met.”

"But it was."

"You would have got away from me if you knew that? Would knowing that have prevented you from approaching me, from wanting to be my friend?”

“No, Dany. Knowing this wouldn’t make me give up on approaching you or being your friend.” he held her face with both hands “And knowing that doesn't cancel out how I feel about you. And I know that you wouldn't be here, in my arms, if you didn't feel something for me too.”

Her heart broke when she saw the hope in his eyes and she could no longer hold back the crying and tears wet her cheeks “I shouldn't have let things between us get to this point. I'm so sorry."

"You don't have to be sorry, Dany." he said wiping away her tears.

She took a deep breath “I have. Since the day we met I knew I shouldn’t get close to you, that I was forbidden to be interested in another man, but this connection between us is all I ever wanted to have with my betrothed and I ended up letting it go too far.”

"I wanted this as much as you did, Dany."

"But you don't have someone waiting for you in your village, do you?"

He shook his head, denying, “No, I haven't. I never liked someone until I met you.”

He rested his forehead on hers and kissed her and she returned the kiss with enthusiasm and then turned away from him “I think you better never come back here, Jon. Whatever it is that we feel for each other, _it is forbidden_ and we can never be together.” she started to walk away and Jon held her hand "It is better that our paths separate now and we forget that one day we met."

He looked into her bright violet eyes. “No, Dany. Tell me that I will see you again. Please don't give up on us.”

“There can never be an _us_. _Never_." she took her hand away from his "I have to go back to my life and you better go back to yours too." she said and left.


	3. Chapter 3

Leaving Jon behind was the most difficult decision she had ever made in her life.

It wasn’t in her plans to let herself get involved like that, she didn’t expect that being close to him would arouse such strong feelings in her and that, with each of their clandestine encounters, those feelings would get stronger making her want to be more and more with him, even though she knew there was no hope for a future for both of them.

As she walked back home, tears from a broken heart clouding her vision, Daenerys realized how foolish she was to think that being around someone like her _no_ _t_ _enemy_ wouldn’t affect her. Trying not to fall in love with Jon was like trying to prevent the flowers from blooming, it was like trying to stop the sunrise and the leaves from falling from the trees in the fall. She loved him and was about to marry another and think about what just happened between them just made her cry more and more.

For days, she had tried to forget that she had met him. For days she had tried to forget that she had kissed him and the sensations he had caused in her body. For days she had tried to conform to just seeing him and having him in her dreams. For weeks she had tried to resist going to the edge of the forest and seeing him again. For weeks she had tried to focus on preparations for her impending wedding, but when her mother asked her to try on her wedding dress and she started to cry wildly, Daenerys couldn't think of anything other than seeing Jon again. Even if it was just to say goodbye.

And that is exactly what she did.

She had hoped that he wouldn’t be there waiting for her, that he had heard her request and stayed away from the forest and returned to live his life. But when she got to the clearing where they always met, he was there with Ghost.

"You came back." said Daenerys, coming out from behind a tree, trying to hide the relief and happiness she felt when she saw him again. The dog went to meet her and she stroked its fur.

"I said I would be back, didn't I?" he said with a huge smile.

"And I told you not to come back, didn’t I?" she countered, unable to avoid smiling.

“You said, but still, I came here every day and waited for you to come. It was worth every second I stayed here.”

"I didn't plan on going back."

"But you are back." he took a step towards her “I know you are getting married soon. I said this to myself over and over again to try to convince myself not to come back, Dany, but I couldn't stop thinking about you.”

“I also tried to convince myself not to see you again, but with my wedding approaching, I started to feel more and more suffocated with each passing day and I couldn't think of anything other than seeing you again. Even if it’s just to say goodbye.”

There was pain and sadness in his eyes when he said "I'm not ready to say goodbye and I don't want to be away from you."

"I don't want to be away from you either, but there is no future for us and I shouldn't have come." he took another step closer to her and she moved away fearing that if he touched her, she wouldn’t have the strength to resist "That kiss... that kiss was a mistake." she said as he got closer to her "I tried on my wedding dress today and I..." she took a deep breath "and I had to smile as the women around me talked about how lucky I am to marry someone like Drogo. But I don't feel lucky.” he held out his hand to her and she hesitated for a few seconds before holding it. Jon pulled her to him and hugged her. She took a deep breath and felt as if her body was covered with burns and just his touch made the pain stop “The way he looks at me and the way he talks to me makes me feel like I'm an object, a prize for him and all I wanted most was for him to look at me the way _you_ look at me.” he pressed her body even tighter against his “I don't know how I can do this, Jon. Tell me how am I going to get married with him after I met you?”

He placed a soft kiss on her hair. "We can get out of here."

She looked at him "Do you mean run away?" he nodded and she felt her heart fill with hope, but that feeling was soon destroyed by her sense of duty "You have no idea how much I would like to get away with you, but, I have a duty to my family."

He stared at her in silence for a few seconds. "Do you love him?"

" _What?_ "

"Do you love this man you're promised to?"

She looked at her feet "My feelings don't matter."

"They matter to me." he held her face in his hands "If you tell me you love him or even like him enough to spend the rest of your life with him, I will go away, I will give up on you forever." he stroked her lip with his thumb "But if you tell me you're doing this just because it's your duty and that you don't love him, I'll fight for you until my last breath." he placed a soft kiss on her lips "So, _do you love him?_ "

She shook her head, denying “I don’t. I don’t love him. And after I met you, I doubt that I will be able to love someone as I love you.”

“I love you, too, Dany. I love you like I never imagined I could love someone.”

She kissed him sweetly and there were tears in her eyes when she said, “You don't understand, Jon. I love you, but if I choose to be with you, I will be turning my back on my family and my clan and you on your mother. And when my family finds out what happened, there will be war. My betrothed will not let anyone of your people live and will hunt us in every place in this world. We will live the rest of our days looking over our shoulders, fearing that we may be found at any moment. They will not stop until they find us and wash the dishonor I have caused with our blood.”

"Is there no way to _get rid of_ that commitment?"

"Nothing but _death_ can break her commitment _to me_." said a thunderous angry voice from somewhere in the trees and the two turned to the direction from which the voice had come and watched as a tall man with a long dark braid came out from behind a tree, with a mixture of anger and disgust in his eyes. Ghost snarled and stood between them "So you have been sneaking through the forest to meet _him_ , to meet our enemy?"

"Drogo!" she said with alarm in her voice "How did you..."

"How did I find out that you are _cheating on me_ with our enemy?" he interrupted, giving Jon a hateful look "If you didn't want to be discovered, then you should have been more careful with your secrets." he looked at her “Did you really think I wouldn't keep an eye on you? That I wouldn't notice that my betrothed spent her afternoons wandering in the forest when she was supposed to be preparing for our wedding?” he looked at her hand still held in Jon's "I knew you weren't as satisfied with our marriage as I am, but when I decided to follow you, I never expected to encounter... _that_!"

Daenerys released Jon's hand and approached her betrothed slowly "Drogo, please let him go."

"Do you  _dare_ to ask me to let him go?" he took her by the arm, pulled her against his huge body and held her chin with his free hand so he could look into her eyes “YOU ARE MINE! MINE!"  he snarled "I will not allow you to dishonor me and my whole family because of someone like him."

"Let her go!" said Jon.

Drogo turned his head slowly in Jon's direction and looked at him with disgust. "Don't make the mistake of stoking my anger, _boy_."

" _Let her go_." Jon repeated stubbornly and Ghost snarled at his side. "I will not allow you to hurt her."

" _Allow me?_ " Drogo laughed before saying, "She is _my property_ and you are not going to tell me what I can or cannot do with what is mine!" Drogo looked at her and back at Jon “But, as my wedding gift to her, I'm going to give you two options, boy. You get out of here on your own legs. Or I will leave your lifeless body here to serve as a warning to any other fool thinking of invading our territory.”

"He's leaving." replied Daenerys, giving Jon a pleading look. “Please, go away. I'll be fine."

Jon seemed to want to argue, but to her relief, he said, “Okay, I'm leaving. Please don't hurt her.” and turned to go back to his side of the river.

"I'm going to make you regret that you let someone as insignificant as him get his hands on you." Drogo put both hands on her face and made her look him in the eye “All the clans will know that you have allowed our enemy to taint our home with his presence and still let him touch you. But I will not give up on our marriage.” he ran his thumb over her lips and kissed her brutally, his tongue trying to force her way into her mouth and she bit his lip. Drogo pulled away enough to stare at her angrily and she spat a mixture of blood and saliva in his face. He wiped his face slowly, angry eyes fixed on hers “I will make you _pay_ for this and you can resist as long as you want, but you will be my wife and you will be the mother of my children. You will be mine forever so I can do what I want and I will make you pay for letting him touch you.”

She looked at him defiantly, all the fear she felt for him was gone "You will have my body, but my heart will be forever his."

“Your body is the only part of you that interests me. And when I'm done _using you_ , when I do everything I want to do with you…" he looked her up and down and smirked "I don’t think he'll want to even look at what will be left of you." he countered and started pulling her towards the village.

"Let go of me! I can walk alone.” she said, trying to free herself from the grip of his hand on her arm, but he squeezed her arm even tighter "You are hurting me!" she shouted, but he just continued to hold her and practically drag her.

Then it all happened suddenly.

One second Drogo was practically dragging her back to where his black stallion was waiting for them and the next she felt her other arm being pulled by Jon and then his fist hit Drogo's face. He rested his hand on his bloody lip and looked at Jon with a murderous look and went after him, throwing him against the nearest tree. Ghost bit his calf, but Drogo's black stallion lunged at him and hit him hard with his front legs and the dog's body hit a tree. He tried to get up, but the horse prevented him from standing.

Meanwhile, Jon tried to hit Drogo with another punch, but he dodged and started to choke Jon with his huge hands wrapped around his neck. Daenerys watched the scene with paralyzing terror. She couldn't let Drogo kill him, even if to save him she had to sacrifice her own life. She tried to get him off Jon, but Drogo hit her in the face with a powerful blow and she fell to the forest floor. When her body hit the ground, she felt Rhaegal stir in her skin and a second later the dragon materialized above them, grabbed Drogo's shoulder with its strong jaws and threw him away from them.

Time seemed to slow as she stood up and went to Drogo. His brown eyes focused on her face as the wounds quickly drained his blood and life. She bent down beside his body and placed her ear on his chest and heard only the sound of her own heart pounding in her ears. He was dead.

Rhaegal stretched his neck and touched her bruised face with his snout. Daenerys hugged him for a few seconds and then the dragon disappeared, returning to being just a tattoo on her skin.

Jon knelt beside her and hugged her.

"He is dead." she said, still staring at Drogo's lifeless face.

"Everything will be fine, Dany."

She hugged him and allowed herself to feel the warmth and safety of his arms for a few seconds "And how's Ghost?"

"He has a broken paw, but he'll be fine." he kissed her hair "Are you okay?"

She shook her head, denying "I need to go back to my village and you have to get out of here."

"Come with me."

"I can't."

"He's dead and that means you're free."

She shook her head, denying “He died at my hands. Just look at his body to know that he was killed by a dragon. If I run, I will be hunted and I will never be really free. I need to go back and tell everyone what happened.”

He looked at her, his eyes filled with fear and concern. “But what will happen if you come back? What if they kill you?”

She put her hand on his cheek "My people are not going to kill me, at least not physically." he looked at her with a frown and she looked at her tattoo “They are going to rip Rhaegal off me and I will be banished from the village and the forest. I will be forgotten by my people and my family and my name will be erased from our history. My punishment will be to be erased from the memory of my people and to roam the world without my guardian, without a family and without having a home to return to.”

Taking a life was seen as an unforgivable crime by her people and Daenerys tried to resign herself to what would surely happen to her when she told about Drogo's murder. She would have to leave behind everything she knew and loved and live with the weight and shame of having dishonored her family.

He hugged her "You will never be alone and, whatever happens, I will wait for you." he said and kissed her "I love you and I will wait for you as long as it takes."

She nodded "I need to go." Jon released her reluctantly and she placed a soft kiss on his lips before saying "Goodbye." and disappear among the trees while he watched her.

As she walked through the forest, she thought about what she would say to her family, how difficult it would be to see the disappointment in her mother's eyes and how she would feel naked without Rhaegal on her skin. As soon as she entered the village and people saw her hands and clothes stained with blood and her face full of bruises, they soon tried to help her and took her home. She kept silent until her mother wrapped her in her arms and held her tight while she told a version of the story that didn't involve Jon and it wasn't long before a patrol found Drogo's body and took him back to the village.

After Drogo's funeral rites, the council of elders met to judge her. The marks on her body made it clear that he had hurt her and the marks on his body left no doubt that a dragon had killed him. When the decision as to what would be done with her was made, Daenerys was placed in front of the entire village and the eldest of all pronounced her sentence: _innocent_. She had been found innocent of her betrothed's death and would not be expelled from her village, she would not be exiled and, most importantly, she would not have Rhaegal snatched from her.

Luckily for her, no one seemed surprised that she was on the edge of the forest when Drogo attacked her. At least she didn't think anyone noticed until her mother brought it up and Daenerys ended up telling her the truth. Her mother's reaction to learning of her forbidden love for someone from the enemy people surprised her.

"You were always so much like him." said Rhaella stroking her hair.

" _Him_?" she asked, confused and curious.

"Your brother Rhaegar. He also fell in love with someone from there." Daenerys stared at her mother, surprised and her mother continued “Except that in his case, the girl was already committed to another man and he had lost his wife just over a year ago. He loved her so much that he was willing to face everything and everyone, even to cause a war if it was necessary to be able to stay at her side, but he died about two years after meeting her.” her mother closed her eyes for a few seconds “Before he went to see her that day, he told me that he had something very important to say to me and that he would tell me when he came back, but he never came home and I never knew what he wanted to tell me.” Rhaella gave her a sad smile “Now I see history repeating itself, but unlike him, you can be with the person you love, my precious. You just need to be strong and determined and choose to live that love.” tears wetted Daenerys' cheeks.

"But, what will happen when our people know that I ran away?" she asked, her heart filled with both hope and anticipation and fear.

“You don't have to run. Your betrothed is dead and the commitment between our families has been broken. No one can do anything against you, my dear.”

“But I… _I don't understand_. Everyone always makes another commitment… Drogo himself had two others before me.”

Rhaella nodded “When someone dies, the natural thing is for people to look for someone to make another commitment with, after all everyone wants to have a family. But our law is clear on this matter. You must take a year to mourn and only then can you make a commitment to someone else, but you cannot be forced to do so. Some people love their betrothed so much that they can't even think about having a life with someone else.” Rhaella smiled "According to our laws, you have done your duty and now you can choose _whether or not_ to be betrothed to someone else."

"I didn't know..." she said, still trying not to be filled with hope.

"Don’t wait until the period of mourning for Drogo's death has passed, because I am sure that, right now, your father is looking for someone else to take his place."

Daenerys hugged her mother, hardly believing she was free "Thank you, mom."

“Come, dear. Set aside some clothes and I'll pack food for you to take.”

Rhaella started walking towards the door, but Daenerys stopped her "Are you going to be okay?"

"If I'm going to be okay knowing that my little girl, that my greatest treasure is happy?" Rhaella hugged her and placed a kiss on her hair before looking at her and saying "I supported Rhaegar before and I will support you now because the greatest joy a mother can have is knowing that her children are happy."

Daenerys didn’t say goodbye to her family when she left the house that morning. As a free person, she knew that one day she could return to her old home and see her family again.

Day was breaking when Rhaegal landed on the edge of the forest and she dismounted. Almost a month had passed since Drogo's death and her heart was pounding at the prospect of seeing Jon again.

She was nestled in Rhaegal's warm body by the river, sunlight bathing them when he saw her and Rhaegal's faint roar drew her attention to his arrival. Jon, with Ghost faithfully at his side, ran to meet her.

"Dany!" he said, wrapping her in his arms "I was so afraid of never seeing you again."

"Me too." she said and kissed him. She had missed his lips so much, his touch, the sound of his voice. Everything about him.

“There were moments when I almost went into the forest to look for you.” he said when their lips parted “What happened? Have you been banned?”

"No. The elders heard my story and decided that I was innocent.” she said and told everything that had happened and her conversation with her mother.

"So, are you _free_ now?" he asked, looking as incredulous as she had when she heard that from her mother.

"Yes, now I am free to love whoever I want."

"Even your not enemy?" he teased her.

She smiled and kissed him without haste.

"I love you, Jon." she said when their lips parted and hugged him.

"I love you, too, Dany." he replied, filling her face with soft kisses.

Snuggled in Jon's arms, Daenerys finally allowed herself to dream of a future with the man she loved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I miss Daenerys and Jon so much! Where's WoW when you need it?
> 
> Oh, if you were wondering if Jon’s father is Rhaegar... yes, he is, but the two will never know. 😉
> 
> Thanks for reading. 😁😘
> 
> You can find me on:  
> My [Twitter](https://twitter.com/filhadoboto)   
> My [Tumblr](https://filhadoboto.tumblr.com/)


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